Principle of the Thing
by RandomRex6
Summary: After a discussion with a few of her students, Komaru realizes she's never seen what's beneath her sister-in-law's gloves. This bothers her.


"No, see, I think she's got, like, webbed fingers or something."

"Idiot, how would they fit?! I'm telling you, she's got some sort of allergy."

"Then why doesn't she wear a face mask?"

"I don't know! It makes more sense than webbed fingers, you weirdo!"

"What are you kids going on about?"

The students of New Hope's Peak turned to look at their teacher, Ms. Komaru Naegi. Komaru had taken it upon herself to be the 'cool' teacher that the kids could feel comfortable talking to. Her level of success varied depending on who you asked.

"Perfect!" one of the students exclaimed, "Naegi-sensei, settle an argument for us."

Komaru bashfully rubbed the back of her head. "I'll try, but I make no promises."

"You know the dean, right?"

"You mean my sister-in-law?" Komaru responded, "Yeah, we've met."

"Well, we were trying to figure out what's under those gloves she always wears. But you've gotta know, right?"

Komaru froze for a few seconds before giving her answer. "Well, sure I do. But... she'd be really upset if I just told you guys, you know?"

The students shared a collective groan. "I guess you're right," one chimed in. "I know I wouldn't want to upset her."

"Yeah," Komaru chuckled, "she can be pretty scary when she wants to be. Now, hurry up and get to your next class."

The students waved goodbye and headed down the hall. Once they could no longer see her, Komaru let out a sigh of relief. "That was way too close."

Later, when lunch rolled around, Komaru found herself sitting with her best friend, Fukawa.

"It's crazy, right, Toko?"

"Wh-what's to be worried about?" the Hope's Peak librarian inquired. "It's not a big deal if you ask me."

"Yeah, maybe not to you, but to me, it's really weird!" Komaru protested. "We've known each other for years now, she's my sister-in-law for God's sake, and I've still never seen what her hands look like."

"It's really nothing to be concerned about," Fukawa reassured her, "I mean, I saw them and it's not exactly life-changing."

This left the green-haired girl astounded. "You've seen them and I haven't?! When was this?!"

"It was during the..." the authoress trailed off. "The last trial."

"Oh geez, I'm sorry!"

"It's fine."

Due to Komaru's imprisonment during the School Life of Mutual Killing, she missed the broadcast. As such, all her information on what happened was second-hand, and minor details could easily go unmentioned. She preferred not to pry, as she realized how upsetting the memories could be.

This however, was a special case. "So, she took her gloves off during the trial?"

"Y-yeah. Long story short, she needed to clear her name about something, and she did it by showing she couldn't walk around without gloves unnoticed."

Now it was time for the big leap. "So, what's under them?"

Fukawa gulped. "Burn marks. Scars. Her hands were almost unrecognizable. I d-didn't r-r-really get a g-g-good look."

"Right, squeamish." Komaru thought about this for a moment. "And you've never seen them since?"

"As far as I know, the only people who have are your brother and the brainless mermaid."

"Hina's seen them?! More than once?!" Today had been quite a roller coaster for poor Komaru.

"L-l-look, if you want to know more, just talk to her!" Fukawa shouted.

Komaru took out her phone. "I think I will." She began composing a text to the Hope's Peak Gym Coach.

 _"No practice today, right? Can we talk after school?"_

A few seconds went by before a reply came.

 _"Sure! Is something wrong?"_

 _"No. Just wanted to ask you something."_

 _"K!"_

The school day went by surprisingly quickly afterward. With the sound of the last bell, Komaru made a beeline for the pool where she knew Asahina would be waiting.

The swimmer turned to look at her. "Hey, Komaru! What's up?"

Komaru took a breath. She always felt awkward talking to Asahina. Being witness to her brother, Yuta's, death left a strange vibe between the two. Asahina always assured Komaru that she wasn't to blame, but it didn't change how Komaru felt. "Toko told me you've seen what's under Kyoko's gloves."

"Umm, yeah," Asahina replied, rather confused, "Is that a big deal?"

"Kind of. 'Cause I was talking to a few of my students today, and I realized I've still never seen them."

"Oh!" the athlete exclaimed, "Wow, I didn't know you hadn't seen them."

"It's weird, isn't it?" Komaru asked. "I mean, Toko told me what they look like, but it's the principle of the thing, you know? You've seen them more than once, right? Toko told me about the trial, what was the other time?"

Asahina suddenly went quiet. "Well, I kinda saw by accident. It was back when we were trapped at Headquarters."

Komaru blanched. "I'm terrible at this. I keep dredging up bad memories."

"No, no, I'm... mostly over it," Asahina claimed. "She had taken her gloves off to hold Makoto's hand, and I caught a glimpse, that's all."

"Why'd she have to take off her gloves for that?" Komaru wondered.

"I asked Makoto about it later, and he told me that Kyoko only feels comfortable taking her gloves off for people she considers family. She was letting him know he wasn't alone," the brunette explained.

And with that revelation, Komaru was angered. "Family?! And she _still_ won't show me?! I'm her _sister-in-law_!"

"Whoa, just calm down! I'm sure she doesn't even know you haven't seen them."

Asahina's theory was quite plausible. Enough to calm the raging teacher, at least. "I guess so. But I'm talking to her about this!"

Later that night, Komaru arrived at her brother's home, intending to make good on her not-quite-a-threat. Fortunately enough, Kyoko answered the door. "May I help you?"

"Yes. We need to talk. Privately."

Kyoko ushered her in. "Makoto's out discussing important matters with Togami. I just finished some paperwork, so I've got a few minutes."

Komaru waited for the door to close before continuing. "Did I do something to offend you?"

Kyoko raised an eyebrow. "I'm sorry?"

"Just, whatever I did to upset you, I'm sorry, but let me know so I can fix it!"

"There's nothing to fix," Kyoko replied. "I don't understand where you're coming from."

Komaru sighed, and once again recounted the tale of her encounter with the students and how it had sent her on a quest to learn what was beneath the former detective's gloves.

"That's what all this was about?" Kyoko asked.

"Yeah, I know, it's stupid, but it really bugs me! We're family, right? Shouldn't I be allowed to see?"

Kyoko took a deep breath. "I'm very self-conscious about this, you are aware."

Komaru nodded. "Yeah, I get that."

"I have difficulty trusting people, and blood ties aren't enough for me to consider a person to be 'family'," Kyoko reminded her.

A twinge of sorrow crept into Komaru's voice, realizing where this was likely to go. "I know. Makoto told me about it."

"But..."

"But?!"

"You've proven yourself to be reliable in the past, and I doubt you'd take advantage of this information," Kyoko began.

"Are you saying-?"

Kyoko stopped Komaru's question with a quick grip to one of her gloves. Slowly but surely, the garment came off, revealing the charred flesh beneath.

Komaru was at a loss for words. The closest she came was, "Whoa."

"Yes," Kyoko replied. "Is that sufficient?"

"Uh... sure," Komaru replied.

Kyoko placed the glove back on her hand. "Was that all?"

"I guess so. Unless..."

"Hm?"

"You want to just, I don't know, hang out?" Komaru offered. "I mean, we don't really do that very often, do we?"

Kyoko pondered this. "I'm not opposed to the idea."

"Really?"

"Of course not," she replied. "You're my sister-in-law, after all."

* * *

 **AN: There is nowhere near enough fanfiction about Komaru and Kirigiri interacting. Consider this your call to arms, people! Rise up and write!**

 **And why are Naegiri Week's themes taking so long? I really want to get started...**


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